Buses from Groningen line up for hydrogen gas delivered safely by a plastic pipeline

Buses from Groningen line up for hydrogen gas delivered safely by a plastic pipeline

Their conclusions based on laboratory findings and industry experience in the Dutch gas industry state: ‘With the application of appropriate measures, most of our existing natural gas networks are eminently suitable for the distribution of sustainable gases such as hydrogen and biomethane.’

The Groningen Project test was undertaken by scientists, Harald Ophoff and René Hermkens from Kiwa Technology.

“Our objective was to assess the safety and material aspects, as well as maintenance issues of a proposed 150 metre length of plastic pipe,” Ophoff said. “As hydrogen is more combustible than natural gas, our most immediate concern was to test the pipe material for permeation, which has safety, economic and environmental impacts.”

The pipeline material examined by Kiwa Technology was made from PE 100-RC. In order to investigate the vulnerability of PE exposed to hydrogen, the pipe material was exposed to 100 per cent hydrogen for 1,000 hours at 2 bar and at room temperature.

One of the critical drawbacks with renewables such as biomass, wind and solar is the consistency of supply.

All systems Gro

“Hydrogen is a gas which can be supplied without interruption … its supply will not be interrupted by any lack of pressure within the pipe so supply remains constant,” Hermkens added.

Switching to hydrogen in the short to medium term will have a positive effect on CO2 emissions, according to Ophoff and Hermkens. With the pipes already in place, the technology is safe and already in use.

Peter Sejersen, Technical Manager for TEPPFA, agrees: “Plastic pipe systems are used almost exclusively by gas network operators in Europe. Some aged non-plastic delivery systems are now due for a plastic upgrade or complete replacement. However, the safety of plastic pipe systems has been confirmed and well documented in Japan, for example, where extreme seismic events are a source of concern.”

The challenge now is not the adoption of the technology but rather the investment required to produce the hydrogen and upgrade gas networks and energy appliances.

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